Don’t Miss: Leonid Meteor Bathe Peak & Saturn in “The Sea”

What are some skywatching highlights in November 2023? The Leonid meteors peak, Saturn sits within the celestial sea, and Venus and Jupiter are seen on reverse sides of the sky.

What to Look For:

Meteors and Saturn in “The Sea”

Bundle up and head out to darkish skies in a single day on November 17 for the height of the Leonid meteors. Search for Saturn all month lengthy within the constellation Aquarius – simply one among a number of constellations associated to water in that a part of the sky. And in case you’re up earlier than the Solar, you’ll have the chance to look at Venus and Jupiter on reverse sides of the sky within the a.m.

November Skywatching Highlights:

• November 9 – Discover the crescent moon hanging simply beneath Venus within the early morning sky earlier than dawn this morning.
• November 17 – Search for a good looking crescent moon sitting low within the southwest all by itself within the twilight following sundown.
• November 20 – After sundown on November 20, look towards the south to see the primary quarter moon just under Ringed Planet Saturn. The pair are joined by brilliant stars Fomalhaut and Altair.
• November 24 – On the twenty fourth, search for the almost full moon shut to massive Jupiter within the east after sundown. Some binoculars will be capable to seize each of them in the identical discipline of view.
• November 17 – The annual Leonid meteor bathe peaks in a single day tonight. Essentially the most meteors will probably be seen between midnight and daybreak on the 18th.
• November 13 – New moon
• November 27 – Full moon
• All month – Jupiter is at opposition this month (on Nov. 3), that means it’s immediately reverse the Solar from Earth. It rises round sundown and is within the sky all night time lengthy, wanting massive and brilliant.
• All month – Venus rises within the couple of hours earlier than daybreak. When you’re up earlier than the Solar, you may observe Venus within the jap sky, and Jupiter within the west.
• All month – Saturn sits inside a area of the sky stuffed with constellations associated to water, together with Aquarius, Pisces, and Capricornus.

Video Transcript

What’s Up for November? Venus and Jupiter on reverse sides of the sky, the Leonid meteors return, and the celestial “sea” surrounding Saturn.

This November, Jupiter is up within the sky all night time and units simply earlier than dawn, whereas Venus rises within the early morning hours. This implies you may see them on reverse sides of the sky in case you occur to be up earlier than daybreak. You could recall that these two planets appeared tremendous shut collectively only a few months in the past, again in March.

On the morning of November 9, discover the crescent moon hanging simply beneath Venus within the early morning sky earlier than dawn. Then on the seventeenth, search for a good looking crescent moon sitting low within the southwest all by itself within the twilight following sundown. Because of the Moon phantasm, which causes the rising or setting Moon to look bigger, a crescent moon low close to the horizon usually seems additional fascinating.

Then, after sundown on November 20, look towards the south to see the primary quarter moon just under Ringed Planet Saturn. The pair are joined by brilliant stars Fomalhaut and Altair. After which on the twenty fourth, search for the almost full moon shut to massive Jupiter within the east after sundown. Some binoculars will be capable to seize each of them in the identical discipline of view.

Lastly, in the previous few days of November, you’ll discover Venus is rising within the morning with a brilliant star very shut by. That star is Spica, which is definitely two huge stars that orbit round one another each 4 days.

The annual Leonid meteor bathe returns this month. The bathe peaks in a single day on November seventeenth, with probably the most meteors seen between midnight and daybreak on the 18th. The Leonid meteors are mud particles that originate from comet Tempel-Tuttle, which was found in 1865 and orbits the Solar each 33 years.

Leonids are typically brilliant, with many producing lengthy trains that persist for a couple of seconds after the preliminary flash of sunshine. To view the Leonids, discover a secure, darkish spot away from brilliant lights, lie down and look straight up. The meteors can seem anyplace within the sky.

This 12 months, the Moon is close to its first-quarter part on the height night time. It units simply a few hours after dusk, so it received’t intrude with viewing Leonids. So carry a heat drink, bundle up, and revel in your time trying to find meteors within the November sky.

Wanting towards the south a few hours after darkish in November, you’ll discover the planet Saturn about midway up the sky. This area of the sky is stuffed with water-related constellations. For that cause, it’s typically known as “the Sea” or “the Water.”

Saturn at the moment sits inside Aquarius, the water bearer, imagined as a human determine pouring water from a jug. Close by are Pisces, the fishes, and Capricornus, the unusual, legendary sea goat. Simply beneath Aquarius is the Southern Fish, and simply above him is the Dolphin. To the east of Aquarius you’ll discover the constellation Cetus, a sea monster or whale. And subsequent to Cetus is the constellation Eridanus, which represents an extended, winding cosmic river.

Now, these star patterns are usually not significantly brilliant or straightforward to pick. However it’s fascinating to notice that this entire space of the night time sky is populated by legendary figures associated to water. And talking of connections between water and marvel, NASA plans to launch its Europa Clipper spacecraft subsequent fall to review Jupiter’s icy moon Europa – which is assumed to include an ocean which may assist life. And you’ll ship your

identify to Europa, etched on the spacecraft. Go to the hyperlink on display screen to signal the “message in a bottle” that will probably be despatched throughout the cosmic sea from Earth to Europa – from one ocean world to a different.

Listed below are the phases of the Moon for November.